UNHCR launches its mid-year Islamic Philanthropy Report in partnership with Muslim World League from Expo2020

• The Refugee Zakat Fund impacted 584,000 beneficiaries in the first six months of 2021, with total contributions of over US$ 27.5 million, 70% of which came from Zakat donations

• Islamic Philanthropy Report was launched in its new digital and interactive format at the Muslim World League’s exhibition “The Prophets As If You See Them” at its Expo2020 Dubai pavilion

In partnership with the Muslim World League, UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, launched its mid-year report on Islamic Philanthropy today. The report highlights the impact of Zakat and Sadaqah donations on the lives of refugee and displaced families through UNHCR’s Refugee Zakat Fund donations.

The report underlines the impact of Zakat and Sadaqah donations raised in the first half of 2021 on 584,586 refugees and forcibly displaced people in 12 countries including Yemen, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq, Egypt, Mauritania, Nigeria, Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, and Malaysia. The report also reveals that over US$ 27.5 million were donated to the Refugee Zakat Fund, 70% of which are Zakat contributions.

UNHCR’s mid-year Islamic Philanthropy report was released in its new digital and interactive format at a panel discussion organized at the Muslim World League’s “The Prophets As If You See Them” exhibition at its Expo2020 Dubai pavilion, attended by representatives of humanitarian and international organizations and media.

The report also emphasizes Islamic philanthropy partnerships as a key enabler of sustainable impact on the lives of vulnerable displaced communities. As a leading example, the longstanding collaboration with the Muslim World League (MWL) was showcased, including MWL’s Islamic Fiqh Council issuing a new fatwa that adds to the Refugee Zakat Fund’s record of more than 10 fatwas by credible scholars and institutions. In addition, MWL has generously contributed to support

efugee and internally displaced children in Africa, in particular their recent contribution to support UNHCR’s psychosocial support for the most vulnerable children in North-east Nigeria, which is expected to help 3,699 internally displaced children by the end of this year.

UNHCR’s Representative to the Gulf Cooperation Council Countries and Senior Advisor for Islamic Philanthropy, Khaled Khalifa, emphasized the importance of expanding strategic partnerships with organizations and bodies involved in Islamic Philanthropy to support international humanitarian efforts. Khalifa commented: “In light of the uninterrupted increase of forced displacement records in recent years, and the protracted crises caused by wars, violence and persecution, Islamic Philanthropy plays pivotal role in responding to the growing humanitarian needs, through its key tools such as Zakat, Sadaqah and Waqf, to achieve shared humanitarian goals and explore further ways to support forcibly displaced people globally.”

MWL’s General Manager of International Cooperation and Events, Mishal Al Shalan affirmed the significance of strengthening Islamic philanthropy tools to serve humanitarian causes, including forced displacement. He stated: "We constantly seek to fortify the human role of the Islamic World League, which has been at the core of our tasks and work since our inception. And the optimal way to do so is through building strategic partnerships with key humanitarian and international organizations such as UNHCR, which we collaborated with for years to support refugee and displaced families in areas affected by war and disasters.”

Launched in 2019, UNHCR's Refugee Zakat Fund is a trusted, compliant, and effective distributor harnessing the power of Zakat to transform the lives of refugee and displaced families. The fund is backed by fatwas from credible scholars and institutions and subject to rigorous governance, ensuring the utmost transparency at every step - from donation to provision of assistance.

To read the mid-year Islamic Philanthropy Report 2021, please click here.